Jumat, 27 Februari 2015

Let’s Call 'Fifty Shades of Grey' What It Is: Perverted

Let’s Call 'Fifty Shades of Grey' What It Is: Perverted

50 Shades of Grey (Facebook)
When the novel Fifty Shades of Grey was published three years
ago, critics described it as "dull and poorly written," "depressing" and
"a sad joke." Yet, it sold 100 million copies.
Women were
fascinated by the dark tale of a 21-year-old college student, Ana
Steele, who falls in love with a handsome but mysterious young
billionaire named Christian Grey after she interviews him for a
newspaper.
The book was accurately dubbed "mommy porn" because it
is sexually graphic and full of crude language, and also because
Christian expects his girlfriends to totally submit to his sexual
tastes—which involve whips, chains, handcuffs and gray neckties.
This
is not just mainstream porn. This is mainstream bondage porn. And it's
coming to a theater near you, just in time for Valentine's Day.
The movie version of the book will hit theaters on Feb. 13, and Fandango says Fifty Shades of Grey
is already breaking records for advance ticket sales. Presumably, fans
of the book will be lining up at the cineplex to watch Christian abuse
Ana in his bedroom, which she calls the Red Room of Pain.
Critics
expected the film to be rated N-17. (After all, the actor who plays
Christian, Jamie Dornan, visited a sex dungeon to prepare for the role.)
But the Motion Picture Association of America announced last week that Fifty Shades
will be rated R. That means (1) the sex scenes were edited carefully,
(2) teenagers can see it legally, and (3) the movie will probably make a
ton of money.
I think I'm going to be sick.
We Americans
get really angry when oil companies spill toxic fuel in our oceans; yet
we applaud when Hollywood dumps a tanker of poisonous garbage like Fifty Shades of Grey
on our country—with no offer to clean up the damage. We should be
outraged. I'm not going to picket my local theater when this movie
debuts, but I'm urging people to think before they spend $10.50 to flush
what's left of American decency down the toilet.
Here are three of the biggest reasons why we should urge everyone to cover their eyes and run from Fifty Shades of Grey:1. It encourages sexual deviance. In the novel, Christian
invites Ana to become his sexual partner, but he asks her to sign a
document that spells out what he plans to do to her—and he demands that
she tell no one about it. The contract says: "The Submissive shall
accept whippings, floggings, spankings, canings, paddlings, or any other
discipline the Dominant should decide to administer, without
hesitation, inquiry or complaint." Ana finds out that Christian has had
relationships like this with 15 other women—and yet she still pursues
him, agrees to the painful sex and enjoys it.
There might have
been some redemptive value in this movie if Ana called the police or ran
out of Christian's penthouse and refused his advances because she
respected herself. But no—she submits to the abuse, and signals to women
everywhere that there is pleasure in pain. The film also tells women
that it's OK to be a mindless sexual slave, especially if your boyfriend
is rich, handsome and has his own helicopter.2. It glorifies violence against women. Last year a researcher from the University of Michigan did a study on the effects of Fifty Shades of Grey
on women readers. It showed that women who read the books (it is
actually a trilogy) were 25 percent more likely to have an abusive
partner; 34 percent were more likely to have a partner who stalked them;
and 65 percent were more likely to engage in binge drinking.
Just
as there is a link between violent video games and violent behavior in
teen boys, this study showed that women who read graphic porn novels
tend to gravitate toward the types of abusive relationships depicted in
books like Fifty Shades. The study also showed that these women
were more likely to have eating disorders. (Interestingly, the dominant
male character in Fifty Shades carefully controls his girlfriend's eating habits.)3. It totally perverts the meaning of love.
In one scene in the book, Christian buys Ana a platinum and diamond
bracelet so she can cover the bruises on her wrists—which she got after
being tied to her boyfriend's bed. The message from Ana's lover: I will
hurt you, but I will buy you nice gifts so you will stay with me. That's
twisted. And couples are going to see this movie on Valentine's Day?
One
of the most bizarre moments in the book occurs after Ana leaves
Christian and then goes back to him. She says: "The physical pain you
inflicted was not as bad as the pain of losing you." Any psychologist
will tell you that is the mentality of an abuse victim, who is
brainwashed to believe that the attention she gets from her abuser is
better than no attention at all.
True love is not about pain,
domination or control—but Hollywood is happy to serve big helpings of
this slop if people are willing to pay for it. Please protect women.
Please defend decency. Please don't support this movie.J. Lee Gradyis the former editor of Charisma. You can follow him on Twitter @leegrady. He is the author of 10 Lies the Church Tells Women and other books. You can learn more about his ministry, The Mordecai Project, at themordecaiproject.org.Unless
otherwise specified, the opinions expressed are solely the author's and
do not necessarily reflect the views of Charisma Media.